Paddling the Middle Branch of the St Regis River

One of the reasons we like this paddle is that we rarely see anyone else, and that was the case today.  We put in off Rt 458 in Santa Clara and paddled down the Santa Clara Flow to reach the narrower part of the river.

We saw lots of cardinal flowers, which is one of the reasons I wanted to come here.

We were surprised to discover that the spot where we used to take out for lunch has been cleared.  The last couple of times we were here it was so overgrown we had to find somewhere else to take out.      I love the view from this spot.

We cut the trip a bit short, so only paddled about 7 1/2 miles  round trip.  W broke his paddle using it as support getting into his boat after lunch, so we headed back to the car from there.

There were lots of small frogs back at the take out.

Paddling Follensby Clear to Upper Saranac Lake

We had a great 9-mile paddle today.  The winds were forecast to be "light and variable" so we decided to get out on Upper Saranac Lake.  We even found someplace to paddle where we had never been before - Saginaw Bay.  That is hard to do given the number of years we have lived here and the number of paddles we have done.

We put in at the southern launch site on Follensby Clear and went under the bridge into Spyder Creek.  Then down the creek into Fish Creek Bay and out into Upper Saranac.  We passed this fancy boathouse that is under construction.

We headed across the lake towards Saginaw Bay, stopping for a break at campsite #8 on Buck Island. Then we paddled the length of the bay.  

We tried to stop at another campsite in the bay but there wasn't a good place to land a boat at the sites we found.  We did find the entrance to the 1.5 mile carry to Weller Pond.  I'd never carry a boat over it, but it might be a nice walk someday.

We went around Buck Island on the way back and stopped at campsite #7.

Paddling Lower Saranac Lake

I joined our paddling group on Lower Saranac today.  We put in at Ampersand Bay and explored a bit of Fish Creek where we saw a great blue heron.

 























I couldn't resist taking another photo of the beautiful water lilies.

We stopped for lunch at campsite 10 on Fern Island.  Then we paddled past Sable Island and Eagle Island on the way back to our starting point, for a total of about six miles.

Paddling the Flow

We had a particular reason for paddling part of the Flow today.  The weather was forecast to be rainy all day, but as usual the forecast was wrong.  So this morning we put another coat of stain on the deck.  Then this afternoon we paddled out to look for a loon.  The director of the Adirondack Center for Loon Conservation had contacted me yesterday about a sick loon and asking me to help monitor its condition.  We could find no sign of it, which hopefully means it recovered.  We did see a healthy looking loon, presumably one of the nesting pair.

I took this photo of an old stump.  I love the way they get populated by other plants.

Paddling Upper Osgood River

We had a wonderful paddle today.  We had to choose someplace that wouldn't be crowded on this holiday weekend, and the Upper Osgood was definitely a good choice.  We paddled 8 miles round trip.

The white water lilies (Nymphaea odorata in the Nyphaeaceae) were beautiful.

The pickerel weed was just starting to bloom.  We figured we would have to return in a few weeks when they are at their peak.  But the water is low and the beavers have been busy.  So a trip later in the season may be challenging.

We remembered that there is a place to stop about 1/4 mile from the end of the navigable portion of the river and stopped there for a break.  But we couldn't remember what the end of the paddle looks like, so I took a photo.  We did manage to pull out all the way on the left but there wasn't much room.

Around the Camp

There are lots of foxglove blooming this year.  Since they are biennials, I'm never sure how many or where they will show up.
















































And the mayflies are out.

First Paddle of the Season

We finally arrived at camp on Friday.  We were delayed in NJ due to car trouble but that hopefully has been fixed.
Yesterday I went to the farmers market.
And today we took our first paddle.  The Fish Creek and Rollins campsites are still closed due to the pandemic, so we went to a very quiet Rollins Pond to put in our boats.  We did our usual route, paddling through Rollins, with lots of pine pollen on the water.


















Then into Floodwood


















As we entered Floodwood we found a mother merganser and at least a dozen chicks.  We didn't see them resting on a log, so we got too close


















and mama decided it was time to leave.  We enjoyed watching them swim along with the little ones closely following their mother's instructions.

















We stopped at a campsite for a break and found swamp laurel in bloom.












































The clouds were gradually appearing as the temperatures rose.  There was still lots of pollen floating on the water in Floodwood.


















We paddled down Fish Creek, through Square Pond, and landed at a camp site opposite the road back to Rollins Pond for a total paddling distance of about 7.5 miles.
























Then it is a bit over one mile walk back to retrieve the car.  Not only was it a good time to paddle before the campers arrive, but we discovered that the water is already quite low due to the nearly drought conditions in the north country.  If we don't get substantial rain soon, there will be quite a few places along the route where one would have to get out and walk.

An Update on Life in General

We are still in New Jersey, but hope to head for camp the middle of next week.  We will finish our project of redoing the "grout" in our patio and sidewalk this afternoon.  We have a final grocery delivery next Sunday.  Then it will be time to pack and hopefully leave on the 17th.

Quilt 67

This one is a queen-sized version of the last quilt I made.  I made it hoping to make a dent in my colorful batik scraps, but I have many, many more scraps to go.  This one will go in the guest room at camp.  It isn't quilted yet, but since that will take a while, I decided to go ahead and post this.

Hiking in Turkey Swamp County Park

The parks are open again so we headed for another Monmouth County Park for a nice hike.  We took the Manasquan Trail and walked about 3 miles.  We found one, and possibly the only, advantage of the pandemic and the need for social distancing.  We only met up with a few people on the trail and each time we put on our masks and stepped off the trail to let others pass.  And one time we stepped off the trail we found a lady slipper orchid, which we would have walked right past otherwise.  That was the only one in bloom but there were lots of other leaves and buds.

We also found lots of Jack-in-the-pulpit and spring beauty.